sunday sweetness...

every now and then we find a surprise in the mailbox...

...just so cute it must be shared.  look at this sweet halloween card. i love this little guy. he is always smiling when he comes into our store. happy first halloween little friend. see you soon.

all treats...

...for halloween. this really is no trick...

...or is it?  can it really be halloween already. where oh where did october go?  today is it. the day you have been waiting for. ALL HALLOWEEN FABRIC IS $4.00 per yard. today only. please note: picture does not guarantee nor reflect current stock available.

a fox in the house...

there's been a clever new discovery over in the corner...

this sly little guy is all dapper in his new colorful dot coat in hometown. the latest and greatest collection by sweetwater for moda. mister fox traveled all the way from grayslake, illinois to join our family. ohsweetlulu made sure he arrived safely. go pay her a visit to see all the little pals hiding in her etsy meadow.

pinwheels...

...so cute they look good enough to eat...

guess what...you can!! cleverly created by emily of the blog sugar & meringue. click here for a tutorial and the recipe.

ruby in reverse...

ruby is in the house!!! i simply never tire of the fabrics brought to us by the super darling mother daughter team of bonnie & camille. some days, i pretend i am just like them.  the only problem, i can't decide who i would rather be, mother bonnie or daughter camille. i guess i will just have to settle for enjoying their talents. 

and speaking of talents...along with ruby is this sweet creation appropriately named in reverse. just another one of the perfectly engineered designs by crystal over at frivolous necessity. the paper pattern is in stock. if you are not in the area, hop on over to crystal's etsy shop to purchase your pdf version which she will  deliver directly to your email account. 

a sneaky peak upstairs...

there was a vision...we just did not know it at the time. i suppose that is what faith is all about. a few years ago, the space on the second floor behind our medical billing company became available. we did not really need the space...but just like fabric...need was low on the list for getting to "yes." 

the former tenant owned a hair salon.  before she moved in, a renovation was completed that included installing extra water lines for the shampoo bowls. those water lines did provide us the opportunity to create a kitchenette, complete with the cutest little dishwasher, for all of us to use...

as you can see, i've already found a great place to set up an ironing board too:)

it also provided a place to move sarah's futon and television for the days when she was sick and unable to go to school, which was often back then...

over the years, i moved in with a desk, a computer and printer. and we've slowly been moving sewing machines and fabric projects up there too.  and with that combination it became apparent and fitting that this become the new home of Sarah's Sewcial Lounge. a true lounge of sorts, with machines and cutting tables, large creative boards and design walls.

it is going to take a few weeks.  we had to ask one of our billing employees to move into the front room, which she graciously did last week...

next i need to empty out the file drawers. this should be an easy task. however, the contents are as priceless as can be...twenty plus years worth of girl scout memories.  and a resume or two from my twenty plus year career in the non-profit world.  stay tuned for our progress. it's sure to be exciting...

finding terrain....

remember the missing bolts. the ones that disappeared in like forty minutes...

guess what?  we have the same lovely print in a 45" coated/laminated roll and a bolt of pre-quilted fabric. 

bowls and bowls...

of thread...

mettler metrosene is now in the house.

sunday sweetness...

meet parker...

everytime he comes into the store, we melt. he is just that sweet. he loves our dogs and the little blue chair.  hi parker:-)                                 

she quilts scarlet & gray...

our front window is stopping traffic. so i must hurry and introduce you to the creator of the quilts you see...

meet darlene gerber and brutus:) darlene graduated from the ohio state university's college of agriculture and home economics majoring in agricultural education.  she first learned to quilt in 1990 and then found a renewed enthusiasm in 2007, when she started quilting in scarlet and gray and hasn't stopped since.  her quilt tops have been in the good hands of long arm quilter jennifer mccann of galena, ohio. you can follow darlene's passion on her blog. www.iquiltscarletandgray.blogspot.com

  

we sincerely thank darlene for allowing us to showcase her beautiful quilts, which will be on display through next weekend.

scarlet & gray...

from one buckeye lover to another...

...quilts by darlene gerber

and mary coffey

the state fair...

have you been following the moda country fair blog hop? i've loved seeing all the pictures and hearing about how fairs have been such a part of so many lives. as i was reading all month long, it brought back memories for me of one of my favorite trips with my girl scouts...

the year was 2001. the ohio state fair has a large parade each day where one girl scout troop was selected to carry the flags. to be selected you had to apply in march, which we did. and then sarah got sick. really sick. by june, the doctors had sent us home with very little hope of her survival. i truthfully wasn't sure she would make it to her birthday, let alone the fair.  but sarah and her higher power had other plans.   

and there she is, walking in the parade carrying the gold and brown flag representing brownie girl scouts. she had a smile plastered from ear to ear. 

i had never seen her so alive. and having so much fun.  later in the evening, we had gotten caught in a torrential down pour. the girls didn't care. i think it even made it more fun. we always had a wheelchair with us, just in case sarah needed it, but she rarely used it.

the next day was just for fun. rides and fair food. sarah loved the french fries and i'm a sucker for fresh squeezed lemonade and elephant ears.

even i got in on the ride fun. although sarah tells me i screamed louder than she did. and she's probably correct on that.

i will never forgot that experience at the ohio state fair. good times had by all. such an amazing week full of miracles. for which i'm so thankful.  if you'd like to see more pics of our trip to the fair, click on over to sarah's blog.

like the hurricane...

there comes a time when one must realize they need help.  this is a good thing of course, for it means we are busy.  if you have been in the store recently you might have had a chance to meet some of our newest creative souls at the cutting counter.    

meet katrina. like the hurricane, she often jokes, to help others remember her name. i assure you though, she is nothing like a hurricane.  kristen ann kirton first brought katrina to our store. she had been googling the internet with the words bone marrow transplant. not the type of search most of us do, yet the dedication katrina has to her job and her patients, had her doing just that. katrina was a staff nurse in the bone marrow transplant unit at university hospitals when i first met her. she recently was promoted to a patient coordinator in that same unit where she now follows the patient and family through the entire ordeal from diagnosis to transplant to post op. not an easy job to say the least, which is one reason she turned to quilting.  we are so lucky that katrina also enjoys spending her saturdays with us.  please join me in welcoming katrina to our team.